U.S. equities extended their winning streak to a third session Monday, with a fourth consecutive slide in crude oil relieving pressure on Treasury yields and clearing the runway for a semiconductor-led rally that lifted the Nasdaq 100 to a three-month high.
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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrapped up talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in New York on Sunday, calling them “very successful” and floating an AI safety notification mechanism for President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping to weigh at their Sept. 24 summit in Washington, alongside potential agreements on tariffs and critical minerals.
The bigger macro release valve was energy.
West Texas Intermediate crude sank 5.1% to $95.16 a barrel, an 11-day low, after satellite shipping data showed Saudi Aramco loading 14 million barrels onto seven large tankers through the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf Cooperation Council states pressed Tehran to lift its blockade on fuel tankers.
Across U.S. equity markets by midday Monday, gains were broad but heavily skewed toward technology, with 10 of 11 S&P 500 sectors higher and energy the sole decliner.
The S&P 500 rose 1.3% to 7,746.92 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.6%, or about 283 points, to 51,964.32.
The Nasdaq 100 jumped 2.4%, or roughly 720 points, to 30,363.70. The broader tech index is now just 1.5 percentage points below record highs.
Within Magnificent Seven stocks, Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) surged 8.7% on positive early responses to its Muse AI agent.
Softer energy prices took the edge off inflation angst that has dominated the rates market in recent months.
The 10-year Treasury yield slipped 2 basis points to 4.97%, the 30-year eased 2 basis points to 5.30% and the 2-year held near 4.75%.
Traders are still pricing another 25-basis-point hike before year-end.
Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said he remains open to inflation resuming its decline toward 2% but warned rates may need to rise if it does not, while Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said Sunday that inflation remains too high across the economy rather than being driven solely by oil.
The dollar index pushed above 100 to an almost three-month high. Gold fell 0.7% to $4,353 an ounce as a firmer dollar and rising odds of another Fed hike weighed on bullion, leaving the metal down 6.5% month-to-date.
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) jumped 6% to $85,000 amid continued appetite for digital assets.
Monday’s Performance In Major U.S. Indices
| Index | Last | % Change | MTD | YTD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | 7,746.92 | +1.3% | +0.9% | +13.4% |
| Dow Jones | 51,964.32 | +0.6% | -2.4% | +8.0% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 30,363.70 | +2.4% | +3.0% | +20.1% |
| Russell 2000 | 2,879.97 | +0.7% | -2.7% | +16.1% |
According to the Benzinga Pro platform:
- The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO) gained 1.3%.
- The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (NYSE:DIA) rose 0.6%.
- The Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) climbed 2.3%.
- The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) added 0.6%.
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The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLC) led all sectors with a 3.4% gain, powered by Meta and a violent move in media names.
The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLK) followed with a 2.2% advance.
Behind them, the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLY) rose 1.24%, the Industrials Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLI) added 0.5%, the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLP) was up 0.03% and the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLU) gained 0.10%. The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLE) was the only sector in the red by any meaningful margin, down 1.91%.
At the industry level, the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SMH) jumped 3.2% for the best move on the board, with the First Trust Dow Jones Internet Index Fund (NASDAQ:FDN) up 2.4% and the U.S. Global Jets ETF (NYSE:JETS) gaining 2.1% on cheaper jet fuel. On the other side, the SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF (NYSE:XOP) sank 3.1%, the VanEck Oil Services ETF (NYSE:OIH) lost 1.2% and the VanEck Gold Miners ETF (NYSE:GDX) fell 1.1%.
Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) was the single best performer in the Russell 1000, soaring 13.71% to $123.49 as reports that SK Hynix Inc. (NASDAQ:SKHY) could lease part of Intel’s future Ohio fab or form a memory joint venture there continued to build.
Tigress Financial lifted Intel’s price target to $145 from $118, flagging Terafab, stronger Xeon demand and 18A execution.
The move pulled the entire complex higher.
Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) rallied 9.1% to $610.51 and joined the $1 trillion market capitalization club, while QUALCOMM Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM) added 7.5% and Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) rose 2.4%.
DigitalOcean Holdings Inc. (NYSE:DOCN) was the second-best large-cap gainer, up 12.75% to $146.61, extending a September run built on the company’s AI-native cloud pivot, its Managed AI Agents launch and a $725 million financing facility earmarked for AI infrastructure.
Rambus Inc. (NASDAQ:RMBS) climbed 11.3% to $97.47, with the memory-interface IP name appearing to trade as a high-beta proxy for the SK Hynix-Intel memory headlines rather than on anything company-specific.
Akamai Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:AKAM) also rose 11.3%, to $116.28. The move builds on a cluster of recent analyst upgrades tied to edge AI inference, including a Bank of America upgrade to Buy with a $175 target and a DA Davidson target increase to $185.
Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. (NASDAQ:WBD) jumped 10% to $30.57 after reports that Paramount Skydance is in advanced talks with California Attorney General Rob Bonta to settle the antitrust suit that has blocked its $110 billion takeover since July.
Paramount Skydance Corp. (NASDAQ:PSKY) climbed about 5% alongside it.
On the downside, Summit Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:SMMT) was the worst Russell 1000 performer, down 5.91% to $16.80, with the stock is giving back part of a roughly 28% weekly surge driven by partner Akeso’s data showing ivonescimab cut the risk of death 27% versus Keytruda in late-stage lung cancer.
Matador Resources Co. (NYSE:MTDR) slid 4.72% to $54.13, a straight read-through from the 5.1% drop in WTI.
The rest of the shale complex went with it, with Chord Energy Corp. (NASDAQ:CHRD) off 3.6%, Permian Resources Corp. (NYSE:PR) down 3.4%, Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) lower by 3.3% and ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) and Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE:XOM) down 3.3% and 3%, respectively.
Forgent Power Solutions Inc. (NYSE:FPS) dropped 4% to $37.86, unwinding part of the advance that followed record fourth-quarter results.
HP Inc. (NYSE:HPQ) fell 3.78% to $33.10 after a regulatory filing disclosed the company’s planning assumption that industry-wide PC unit volumes will decline roughly mid-single digits in percentage terms in calendar 2027 versus 2026.
Elsewhere, freight names struggled.
United Parcel Service Inc. (NYSE:UPS) lost 3.7% and FedEx Corp. (NYSE:FDX) fell 3.6%.
The earnings calendar was empty Monday, with AutoZone Inc. (NYSE:AZO) opening the week’s reporting slate Tuesday morning and Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ:COST) the marquee name Thursday afternoon.
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Monday’s Russell 1000 Top Gainers
| Name | % change |
|---|---|
| Intel Corporation | +13.71% |
| DigitalOcean Holdings, Inc. | +12.65% |
| Rambus Inc. | +11.27% |
| Akamai Technologies, Inc. | +11.25% |
| Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. | +10% |
Monday’s Russell 1000 Top Losers
| Name | % change |
|---|---|
| Summit Therapeutics Inc. | -5.91% |
| Mohawk Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MHK) | -5.37% |
| Matador Resources Company | -4.72% |
| Forgent Power Solutions, Inc. | -4% |
| HP Inc. | -3.78% |
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